


Shore Leave

by Elizabeth_Inkheart



Series: The Skeld Series [4]
Category: Among Us (Video Game)
Genre: Black not knowing how humans work...AGAIN, Brain Freezes, Character colors are identified by names, Christmas, F/M, Family Feels, Fluff, Holiday Special, Ice Skating, Imposters are aliens, Kiss?, M/M, MUCH Family Feels, Mild Angst, Mistletoe, New Years, Orange and Lime are married, Sledding, Snowball Fight, Tags May Change, The Chef Knows, They have a mini crewmate named Clementine, White being an awesome boyfriend
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:21:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28180827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elizabeth_Inkheart/pseuds/Elizabeth_Inkheart
Summary: WARNING: This story will not make sense unless you read part 1 and part 2 of this series. If you haven't read those works yet, I suggest you do for this all to make sense.[The following story takes place in between the events of Affection and In The Chain of Command]It's that time of year again, and the crew of the Skeld decide to spend the holidays together in a Vacation house. Black, being an imposter amongst humans, is unfamiliar with these strange traditions... So, the crew take it upon themselves to give him the full holiday experience...Naturally, chaos ensues...
Relationships: Black/White, Orange/Lime, Yellow/Red
Series: The Skeld Series [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1955758
Comments: 26
Kudos: 28





	1. December 19th

**Author's Note:**

> Hello my lovelies!!! I HAVE RETURNED!!!
> 
> I have wanted to do this story for a while now, and what better time to do it than during Christmas break?! I am so excited to be writing for you all again and, now that 1st semester is over, I should be able to maintain a legitimately consistent uploading schedule once 2nd semester starts! (Also, this story should hopefully help you deal with the literal MOUNTAIN of sour filled angst I've got cooking up in work #3 of this series, so there's that)
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

The day was long and arduous. The crew had been working tirelessly to ensure they made it back to MIRA HQ by their deadline of December 20th and that meant long hours of seemingly endless tasks to perform with virtually no end in sight.

Blackstone heaved a heavy sigh as he paused from where he was busily typing MIRA reports and stretched his four aching tendrils who protested having to remain coiled for so long due to how many reports he had to complete. He stretched them again in opposite directions and gave a huff as he finished doing so. It felt as if every fiber of Blackstone’s being didn’t want to go back to typing up reports, but their commute back to earth was almost over, so he just had to keep pushing. Besides, whatever reason they were going back to MIRA HQ for must be important.

Blackstone’s thoughts were interrupted by a loud knocking at the Security room door. He turned, to see the culprit was none other than the prestigious captain of the New Skeld, Henry White. All at once, the exhaustion that plagued Blackstone left, and his pupils dilated as he stood and approached Henry. “Why hello, dear Captain!” Blackstone said, “To what do I owe the pleasure?” Henry chuckled as he approached the tall dark-skinned alien before him and pulled them into a gentle embrace. Blackstone trilled happily in response at the welcomed touch and wrapped his tendrils around his beloved Captain.

A blissful moment of hugging passed before Henry spoke. “Are you packed up and ready to go?” Blackstone hesitated then pulled away from Henry slightly to look him in the eyes as he asked, “Packed up for what?” Henry blinked in surprise, then separated from Blackstone completely as he replied. “What do you mean? Stone, it’s the holidays! We’re spending our shore leave in the vacation house the Citruses rented for us! Didn’t anyone tell you?” Blackstone shrugged and shook his frilled head in response. Henry sighed before continuing. “Well, hurry up and pack your things. ETA is 10 minutes, and I wanna hurry up and get to that vacation house.”

Blackstone had thrown together some random items and, thanks to the warning from Lavender, made sure to pack his warmest civilian outfits for their recreational time in Colorado. Upon landing at the ground terminal in Denver, Blackstone noticed something. This was the first time he’s ever partaken in any human holidays. Sure, he’d heard them mentioned in passing during his days at the Academy, and noticed it was considered polite to wish them a happy holiday, but all in all he never paid it much attention since he didn’t know what it was.

The crew marched out of the ground terminal and loaded their items into a large, rented van. As Blackstone clambered in, he noticed a cyan coated crewmate marching off in a different direction. “Where’s Aquamarine going?” Blackstone asked as he ducked to keep his frills from scraping the roof of the car as he buckled in. Evergreen took a glance in Aquamarine’s direction then replied. “Oh. Don’t worry. She’s got family she’s staying with. She’ll be meeting up with us for our daily activities instead of staying at the vacation house.” Blackstone nodded in acknowledgement when part of Evergreen’s sentence finally registered to him. _Daily activities? What exactly was this tradition?_ His questions were soon forgotten and remained unanswered as Mr. Citrus started the engine, and drove away from the ground terminal towards the vacation house.

The drive was silent, and as Blackstone glanced out of the van’s window, he noticed one thing that stood out. Lights. Every other time he visited Earth, the surrounding buildings had lights up for visibility in the form of streetlights or neon signs. But now everything seemed to have lights on them and for no reason whatsoever. The streetlight posts had lights coiled around them; trees had multicolored strands of lights arched across their branches. Roofs of buildings were striped with strand after strand of lights and nearly everything was either red, white, gold, or green. It was quite beautiful to look at. But it all felt so… foreign… Blackstone continued staring as the van passed by another elaborately decorated pine tree, and he finally mustered up the courage to ask what exactly these… _holidays_ were.

“Henry?”

Henry hummed in acknowledgement as he turned to face Blackstone. Blackstone, still staring out the window, asked, “What exactly is this… holiday we’re celebrating?” Henry smiled fondly at the alien’s question, and thought to himself for a moment before going to answer. As he opened his mouth to talk, however, Mr. Citrus spoke up from where he was in the driver’s seat. “We’re celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ.” Blackstone turned to stare at Mr. Citrus questioningly. _Who is… Jesus?_ Henry chuckled from where he sat, then commented. “Well, for some, it’s about the birth of Jesus. For others, it’s a time to appreciate friends, family and loved ones.” Blackstone grew even more confused and, rather than let his brain stew amidst the ever growing confusion, decided to ask more questions.

“So, who’s Jesus?”

Henry chuckled again at Blackstone’s question as he answered. “Jesus is a religious figurehead. According to Christianity, he’s God’s son.” Blackstone recognized one of the words from that sentence. “Isn’t religion the human practice of worshipping fake god-like entities?” At Blackstone’s question half of the crew tensed up ever so slightly. Lavender deliberately looked out the window next to her, and Mr. Citrus cleared his throat before shooting Blackstone a patronizing glance via the rear-view mirror. Blackstone’s heart dropped as he involuntarily shrank where he sat. Henry noticed. After a long, and uncomfortable pause, Henry leaned over and said “Don’t feel too badly, Stone. You didn’t know any better. Just… remember next time that humans can get a bit touchy feely when it comes to what they believe in.” Blackstone nodded, and returned to staring out the window. His mild discomfort eventually faded away as he grew mesmerized by the pretty lights passing them by. In fact, he grew so mesmerized, He didn’t realize they had arrived until the familiar voice of Mr. Citrus said “Alright, crew! We’re here!”

And with that, their shore leave began.


	2. December 20th

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Henry wakes up to discover that Blackstone didn't sleep at all and goes to figure out why.

Henry yawned and sat up in the cozy warm bedroom of the large vacation house they were staying in. He noticed the other half of the bed was still the same as it was before, with Blackstone’s belongings still in the same place as they were when everyone chose which room they would stay in. _Where was he?_ Henry wrapped a robe around himself and slipped his feet into some fuzzy slippers before leaving his room. His matted hair was sticking up in all directions and he yawned again while vigorously rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Henry went downstairs and, to his surprise, saw Blackstone sitting on a chair in the living room staring at nothing in particular. The imposter’s frills were vibrating ever so slightly, and his eyes, although focused on the front door, were seemingly glossed over with a sort of… blank expression. _What was wrong with him?_

“Stone?”

Blackstone flinched ever so slightly at the sudden voice out of nowhere, and when he turned to meet Henry’s blue eyes, the glossy blank expression was replaced with one of exhaustion. Nevertheless, they carried an overall warmth to them as he trilled warmly and replied. “Good morning, Henry. Sleep well?” Henry, now properly concerned for Blackstone’s well-being, replied “Uh… Yeah. Yeah, I slept perfectly fine. But you look like you haven’t slept at all! Why is that?”

“It’s because he hasn’t slept at all!”

The two turned to see Jessica bounding down the stair full of energy and clad in a warm red night shirt, some loose-fitting pajama pants, and fuzzy kitten socks. Goldie was right behind her, wearing his own MIRA issued robe, and some Star Trek pajama pants. He yawned loudly before running a hand through his tangled, wavy brown hair, and with a voice laced with a sleep induced German accent, simply said “I’m gonna make coffee.” before shambling off to the kitchen. Jessica acknowledged what Goldie said before turning back to her two senior officers to explain what she said. “Imposters have this instinctual thing where they never fully go to sleep if they’re in a place that they aren’t familiar with, or if they feel unsafe. What they do instead is go into this… sort of… power save mode. They put half their body asleep at a time so that they can still get _some_ rest while keeping watch for any dangerous threats that might harm them. I’m surprised you don’t know about this, Captain. Especially since you’re _dating_ him.”

At that last remark, Henry blushed, and sleep deprived Blackstone simply chuckled at his beloved Captain’s response before returning his gaze to nothing in particular. Henry cleared his throat to mask the slight embarrassment threatening to constrict around his throat and asked. “Uhm… How do you know about this, Jessica?” Jessica smiled brightly while she yanked a brush through her tangled, curly red hair. “Blackstone and I were roommates while we were at the Academy. It took him about three weeks until he finally trusted me enough to go to sleep in the same room as me.” Jessica chuckled before marching after Goldie who was so tired, he didn’t notice the coffee container spilling over with water as he filled it up at the sink.

Henry returned his gaze to Blackstone; whose tired eyes still held an aura of happiness about them as he asked. “Anything I can do for you, love?” Henry sighed, sat on the couch, and beckoned Blackstone over. The tired alien complied and sat down on the couch next to his beloved Captain as Henry replied. “One thing you can do for me is get some proper sleep. I don’t like seeing you like this." Blackstone sighed before curling his large legs up onto the couch and laying his frilled head into Henry’s lap as he replied. “I’m sorry, Henry. I can’t help it. I don’t instinctively trust this place yet.” Henry shook his head as he stared at the large, powered off, television screen directly in front of them. His hand instinctively began petting Blackstone’s head, and the alien gave a deep content trill as Henry commented. “You do realize this place is safe, right? The only people nearby are people on vacation, and this house holds the best crew in all of MIRA.”

Blackstone gave a small huff. “I know that, Henry…” The alien gave a two-toned yawn and Henry noticed that Blackstone’s secondary eyes had closed altogether. Henry continued with his gentle head rubs, and Blackstone gave another content trill before saying. “I feel safer with you here, Henry. Will you keep watch while I’m asleep?” Henry glanced down and noticed Blackstone’s primary eyes were nearly closed. Henry gave a sweet smile and nodded his head. “Of course, Stone. I’ll be right here when you wake up.” Almost as soon as Henry finished his sentence, Blackstone let out a deep rumbling trill as his primary eyes finally shut closed. His breathing became even and calm. Very… _peaceful._ Henry’s hand kept rubbing small circles on Blackstone’s head as he observed the rest of the crew waking up for breakfast.

John Brown had actually taken the time to fix his stormy gray hair before coming downstairs, as did Mr. Citrus. The two of them both marched their way into the kitchen, and within moments, Mr. Citrus could be heard yelling in angry rapid-fire Spanish about how John’s breakfast wasn’t a proper way to start the day since it didn’t involve coffee. Henry laughed to himself while Azul and Evergreen turned on the TV and switched on the sports channel to catch up on some much-missed football. Mr. Citrus, giving up on trying to reason with the older chef, had stopped his frustrated marching when he saw Henry watching football with Azul and Evergreen.

“Henry?”

The captain turned to look his friend in the eye and gave a nod in greeting as he replied. “Good morning, Kevin. Sleep well?” Mr. Citrus gave his friend a confused look as he asked. “Henry, since when did you watch football? I thought you were into hockey?” Henry shrugged then glanced down at the sleeping imposter in his lap. “I didn’t choose it. Plus, I’m a bit preoccupied.” Mr. Citrus peered over the back of the couch and, at the sight of the sleeping imposter, scoffed. “So, it’s your turn to be the involuntary pillow, huh?” Henry shrugged as he smiled. “I guess so.” The two laughed for a moment, and Mr. Citrus sighed before asking. “Do you want me to bring you over some breakfast? Y’know… since you… can’t move?” Henry nodded. “Yeah, that would be nice. I don’t think I’ll be moving for a while…”

Blackstone awoke nearly two hours later and as promised, Henry was still on the couch, awake and alert, faithfully watching over him. Blackstone sat up as he rubbed the sleep out of his four eyes. He stretched, and Henry couldn’t help but notice the way his frills trembled whenever Blackstone stretched. Upon finishing, Blackstone nuzzled Henry eagerly. “Thank you, Henry.” Henry smiled and leaned into the touch as he replied. “Anything for you, Stone.” Before long, their embrace was interrupted by John Brown placing a large bowl full of seasoned, raw meat in Blackstone’s lap. Henry scooted over to give Blackstone’s barbed tongue some space as it skewered three of the small chunks in one go and disappeared back into the mouth on Blackstone’s stomach. As Blackstone ate, the crew gathered in the living room, and Mr. Citrus stood in front of the TV to address the entire crew.

“Alright.” The medical officer began, “As you all know, we’re here on vacation for the holidays. Since everyone is tired, Mary and I figured you’d want today to just… relax and catch up on some much-needed sleep. All I ask is that you keep in mind that Mary and Clementine will be arriving here at around… 2:00. That means _nothing inappropriate.”_ Mr. Citrus shot everyone a glance before commenting, “I’m looking at you two, Azul and Evergreen.” The crew all laughed, and Evergreen smiled slyly as he gave a ‘that’s just who I am’ shrug before returning his arms behind his head. Mr. Citrus continued his small speech. “Well, that’s all I have planned for you guys today so… have fun. Enjoy yourselves. Remember, we’re going ice skating tomorrow!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooh... Ice skating... I wonder what kind of adventure that will entail...


	3. December 21st

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The crew go ice skating. Blackstone's never been. Rose is quite the show off.

Henry noticed he was able to get Blackstone to fall asleep if he stayed up alongside the alien for an hour or two. Thus, his night was spent forcing himself awake for Blackstone’s sake, listening and internalizing the patterns of Blackstone’s breathing, and resisting the urge to stroke the frills that undulated mere inches away from his face. Blackstone was prone to having strange fits and would wake up at random moments throughout the night. In which Henry would wake up, calm the tense alien down with hugs and nuzzles, then forcing himself to stay awake throughout the ungodly hours of the night so that Blackstone could get at least some semblance of a decent night’s rest while fighting against his overprotective instincts.

…To put it simply, Henry got no sleep last night.

Henry blinked the sleep from his eyes and forced his sleep deprived body to ingest yet another mug of coffee. Mr. Citrus and John Brown were arguing over cooking techniques again, and the crew were all getting ready for their daily excursion to do group activities. Mrs. Citrus, who had arrived yesterday, was busy laughing with Blackstone whose frills kept getting yanked by an overly curious baby Clementine. Henry smiled to himself at the sight before him and thought randomly, _Blackstone would make a good parent._ A rare trait among imposter kind to be sure.

“Henry!”

The sleep deprived Captain turned to see Mr. Citrus giving him his signature medical glare as he looked Henry over. “Jesus, Henry. You look like you just came back from the Mars front. Are you having those nightmares again?” Henry shook his head and dismissed the question with a wave of his hand as he spoke. “Nah… You already know I’ve put all war that stuff behind me for good.” Mr. Citrus shifted his weight from one foot to the other as he continued pondering as to what would cause Henry’s drowsy stupor. “Well, if it wasn’t nightmares, then what was it that made you look like living roadkill?” Henry huffed out a laugh as he gestured behind him with his thumb and explained. “Stone can’t sleep if he’s in a place he doesn’t fully trust. So, I need to stay awake and reassure him everything’s ok so that he can get at least, _some_ rest.”

Mr. Citrus shook his head as he placed yet _another_ espresso in front of Henry on the counter and sighed. “As nice as that is, Henry, you can’t just give up your health to make sure he gets a bit of shut eye.” Henry shrugged and took a swig of the bitterly strong drink before he spoke. “I won’t disagree with you, Kev…” Henry looked over his shoulder to watch as Blackstone lifted a giggling Clementine up into the air with his tendrils. He smiled slightly as he continued. “But if I do it for him, then it’s worth it… y’know?” Mr. Citrus smiled at the scene of Clementine playing and his heart leapt at the sound of Clementine’s bubbly laughter as he nodded. “Yeah… I understand how you feel…”

Blackstone’s four red eyes remained glued to the window as the crew drove to their activity for the day. He continued to take in the various brightly colored storefronts and observed how various humans came out of stores and malls with shopping carts filled well over their carrying capacity with various brightly colored boxes. Apparently, they were called presents, and were a large part of this… holiday tradition. According to the crew, participating in winter activities were also part of the holiday tradition. One of these winter traditions, which Blackstone would encounter today, was ice skating.

…Needless to say, he was a bit confused.

“So… you attach blades onto your feet… then use them to propel yourself across frozen water?” Blackstone asked perplexed. Rose chuckled where she was sitting next to the curious alien. “Yeah, pretty much. It takes a bit of getting used to, and it definitely is a challenge for people who don’t know how to balance well. But once you get the hang of it, its actually really fun!” Evergreen scoffs from where he sat in the row of seats behind them. “Says the figure skater…” Blackstone, although reassured by Rose’s kind words, were made even more confused by Evergreen’s. _What’s a figure skater?_

Blackstone’s question went unanswered as the van came to a halt and parked in the parking lot for a large building. Blackstone adjusted the poorly fitting pants that he wore and fell in step alongside Henry, who had a small bag slung over his shoulder. Henry glanced over at Blackstone and smirked. “You ready, Stone?” Blackstone gave Henry an unsure shrug as he stared at the building they were approaching with uncertainty. “If how hard I found it was to grasp the overall concept of this…activity was any consolation, I doubt I’ll be any good at it.” Henry patted Blackstone’s shoulder reassuringly. “Don’t worry. I’ll help you figure it out.”

Once inside, the crew took turns renting ice skates from the counter. Blackstone, since his legs were abnormally shaped, had to shift his lower half to imitate human legs just so that he could put on the actual ice skates. Needless to say, there were quite a few people staring to catch a glimpse of an alien trying to properly lace up a pair of skates and all the attention made Blackstone feel self-conscious ever so slightly. His frills were undulating with embarrassment. Henry helped him lace his skates, and Blackstone tested his balance on the slender blades while Henry put his own personal ice skates on. Most of the crew were already on the ice, and Rose was already pulling away from the troupe with long elegant and graceful movements. It was… mesmerizing to watch, and Blackstone wondered for a moment if she felt weightless while doing it because of how light her movements seemed against the ice’s cool smooth surface.

A hand on his shoulder snapped Blackstone out of his daze and he turned to see Henry laced up in his own pair of skates that looked… different from the kind that Rose was wearing. Henry smiled as he asked. “You ready to go, Stone?” Blackstone nodded shyly, and the two marched with their skates over to the entrance to the ice-skating rink. Henry stepped seamlessly onto the ice and shifted his weight to keep himself from sliding forward. He offered his hand to Blackstone to help him step down. Blackstone took his hand gingerly, and kept his two right tendrils gripping onto the wall to support himself. He stepped his left foot down onto the ice. The skates slid drastically with every minute change or shift in weight that Blackstone placed in his foot, and Blackstone’s grip involuntarily tightened around Henry’s hand in response. Once finally managing to get his left foot to stay still, Blackstone slowly placed his right foot onto the ice. Henry smiled at the small changes in expression Blackstone made, and made sure to offer his other arm to support the alien if needed.

After about a minute, Blackstone finally stood on the ice on his own. Henry shifted his weight so that his skates naturally spun him to face forward, and Blackstone couldn’t help but give an exacerbated huff before asking “Henry, how did you learn how to skate?” Henry shrugged as he nonchalantly said. “I played hockey in high school. Skating is kinda necessary for me to play that sport. You ready to try?” Blackstone nodded, still unable to look away from his feet for more than a second. Henry held onto Blackstone’s tendril as he spoke. “Alright. Now what you want to do is get used to putting your weight on one foot, then the other foot. You don’t need to pick your feet up yet. Just shift your weight.” Blackstone observed the Captain’s movements, then began copying him. He noticed the skates didn’t slide as much. Off in the distance, Rose jumped, spun, and landed a triple axle before gliding away soundlessly on one foot. _…Showoff…_

“Now here’s the important part.” Henry explained. “When you have your weight on one foot, you push off with the other to move yourself forward by angling the skate in the ice like so.” Henry demonstrated by pushing off the ice with his left foot, then used his right one to glide for a few feet before turning to a stop. He beckoned Blackstone towards him with his hands. “Now you try.” Blackstone mentally steeled himself, then released the death grip his tendrils had on the wall as he pushed forward. Sure enough, Blackstone began to glide forward and, although he threatened to lose his balance a few times, he eventually made it to the safe, sturdy embrace of Henry’s arms on his own. Henry’s smile broadened from ear to ear as he swelled with pride. “Good job, Stone! You’re a fast learner!” Henry repositioned himself alongside Blackstone, and offered his hand to Blackstone again. “Shall we?”

The two began skating alongside each other around the skating rink. Blackstone nearly fell multiple times, but after going around the rink twice, he began to get more comfortable with it as he fell into the natural rhythm that Henry’s skates set. Blackstone’s red eyes met Henry’s as his frills vibrated with excitement. “I think I’m getting the hang of this!” Suddenly, a hand grasped Blackstone’s right one, and Blackstone was yanked from Henry’s grasp by a blur of pink as a voice called out and said, “My turn to skate with the alien!” Henry blinked in surprise, then began to speed up his skating as he chased after Rose and Blackstone. “Rose!” Henry called out with a laugh. “Get back here!”

Blackstone’s tendrils were flaring with surprise as he held on for dear life, Rose laughed as she tightened her grip on the alien tendril and skated around the corner. Blackstone’s skates dug into the ice with the sudden change in direction, and bits of ice were sprayed everywhere as he was dragged behind the figure skater. Rose laughed as Blackstone gave a startled yelp while they took the next corner. “Rose! Give me back to Henry please!” Blackstone begged. Rose, with a half pout, released Blackstone from her grip. The inexperienced alien went sliding rapidly across the ice rink to Henry who was standing not too far away. “Henry! I can’t stop!” Blackstone called.

Henry turned just as Blackstone’s body weight slammed into him and the sudden change in momentum made Henry’s feet slip, and kick into the air. The two were weightless in the air for a mere millisecond before Henry fell on his back, and Blackstone’s bodyweight knocked all the air out of his lungs. Henry coughed in a half wheeze. “Oh God, you're heavy…” Blackstone, in his panic, slipped on the ice, and faceplanted into Henry’s chest nearly three times before finally flipping over onto his backside. His tendrils trembled with concern as he looked the Captain over. “Oh no! Henry, I’m so sorry! Are you alright?!” Henry wheezed where he was and weakly gave a thumbs up as he responded with a raspy voice. “Never better…” Henry grimaced as he sat up. From across the ice rink, the two could see Azul laughing at their fall, suddenly lose his balance, stumble for nearly ten seconds, then finally slipping and then landing on his ass. Evergreen began laughing at his friend for falling only for Azul to yank his arm and make him fall as well.

Both Henry and Blackstone began laughing. Henry’s laugh turned into a ragged cough and Blackstone’s concern spiked again. Henry stood up gingerly, before helping Blackstone to his feet. “Why don’t we go sit down for a bit?” Henry offered. Blackstone gave a sigh of relief and nodded. “That’s probably for the best…” The two made their way to the benches and sat down. The both of them sighed as they watched the rest of the crew skate, and Blackstone nuzzled Henry while trilling happily. Perhaps some activities were best enjoyed from a distance...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Henry being golden boyfriend material is something that I simply cannot seem to get enough of and I'm the damn author of this story... Unfortunately for you, that means putting up with my chaotic bullshit... again lmao


	4. December 22nd

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The crew drive to the top of Pike's Peak to see the view and Henry starts a snowball fight

Blackstone stared wide eyed as the crew passed yet another aspen grove on their long drive up Pike’s Peak, the tallest mountain in Colorado. According to Mrs. Citrus, Aspen groves were all one large organism since they grew new tree sprouts from a vast interconnected system of roots that stems from the original parent. He’d never known creatures could grow in such a way and… now that he thought about it, this was quite possibly the largest singular organism he’d ever seen. Henry smiled as he watched Blackstone’s frills undulate with curiosity. His eyes were as wide eyed as Clementine’s who was busy staring at the jagged, snowcapped mountain peak their van was fast approaching.

“Henry?” Blackstone asked. Henry met Blackstone’s four red eyes as Blackstone continued. “Why aren’t we hiking up the entire mountain?” Henry shrugged nonchalantly as he replied. “Pikes Peak is over 14,000 feet tall, Stone. Hiking it would not only take all day, but it would also be physically daunting on Mrs. Citrus since the air is way thinner up there. Childbirth takes months to recover from, and it takes someone even longer to regain their peak physical fitness that they most likely lost during pregnancy.” Blackstone blinked as he internalized what the Captain had said. “So… we aren’t climbing the mountain because she isn’t as fit as she used to be?” Both Henry and Mrs. Citrus nodded. Blackstone found it odd that something as simple as elevation could have such drastic impacts on human beings, but the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. Thankfully, his body was not as fragile as a human’s. He was far stronger physically, and if what they said was true, then Blackstone wouldn’t have to worry about the thinner air.

Before long, the van pulled up to a parking lot near the top of Pike’s Peak. The crew disembarked the vehicle there, and as Blackstone looked around, he saw snow on the ground. Blackstone stared wide eyed at the frozen liquid that peppered the ground and squatted down next to a small mound of snow. He poked and prodded the snow with a tendril and marveled at how the heat from his body would make the individual icy crystalline snowflakes melt. Henry, noticing Blackstone’s mesmerized nature, came over and squatted next to him as well while the rest of the crew observed Clementine play with snow for the first time. Henry observed how fixated Blackstone was by the snow, then asked. “Is this your first-time seeing snow, Stone?” Blackstone’s red eyes glanced at Henry’s for a second before returning to the smiley face that he was drawing in the snow mound. “Quite the contrary, Henry.” Blackstone answered. “I’ve seen snow multiple times but… I’ve never quite had the time to properly enjoy it. It fascinates me…”

Henry nudged Blackstone’s shoulder. “Wanna see what else you can do with snow, Stone?” Blackstone observed as Henry scooped a large handful of snow and began compressing it until it was roughly shaped like a ball. A devilish grin appeared on his face as he stood up and beckoned for Blackstone to stand up with him. Blackstone obliged, and as he did so, he felt his head throb once before all went back to normal which was… strange. _Perhaps I stood up too quickly._ Blackstone reasoned. Henry hefted the snowball in his hand as he glanced at Blackstone again. “Watch this.” Henry threw the snowball across the virtually empty parking lot, and smacked Evergreen in the nape of his neck. Evergreen’s body flinched up from the impact, and he turned around with his shoulders raised to prevent the bits of frozen water to slip down the back of his shirt and coat. He scanned the parking lot for the culprit, and when his eyes fell on the pair of senior officers, Henry nonchalantly pointed at Blackstone. Evergreen’s head tilted as he smiled and began scooping up snow from where he stood as he yelled. “You’re gonna get it now, Captain!” Henry laughed, then began scooping up more snow to make snowballs. Blackstone simply observed Henry making snowballs until the Captain looked up and met Blackstone’s red eyes.

“C’mon, Stone!” Henry beckoned with a beaming smile. “Get your ass down here and help me make some ammo!” Blackstone’s unease melted away as excitement took over. He began scooping up snow, and copying Henry’s movements to shape it, then would stack it neatly in between the two of them. He glanced across the parking lot to see Azul making some snowballs of his own while Evergreen came running over. Snowballs in hand. Henry noticed and scooped up as many snowballs as possible before springing to his feet. “Oh shit! Run, Stone!” He yelled. Evergreen threw the snowball at Blackstone. Blackstone, unable to get to his feet fast enough, dove forward out of the way of the projectile, and rolled to his feet before sprinting away with one snowball in each of his four tendrils. As he turned to lay eyes on Evergreen, another snowball whizzed past his head, and he slid to a stop. Azul had tried to land a long distance blow and, upon missing, cursed before turning back to creating more ammo. Blackstone turned to see Evergreen still chasing after him, and he launched two of his snowballs at the green coated crewmate. Evergreen used his arms to shield his face as the snowballs struck his shoulder and left thigh. Blackstone, full of pride, ran and ducked behind a car to shield himself while he made more snowballs.

On the other side of the parking lot, Henry was being chased by an aggravated Mr. Citrus, who, rather than make a proper snowball, just grabbed the biggest chunk of snow he could find and chased after Henry with it. Lavender jumped in between the two of them, and landed a firm shot on Mr. Citrus’s stomach with a snowball. Mr. Citrus’s grip shifted, and the large chunk of snow fell apart in his grip, only to fall on top of his head. Henry and Lavender laughed while Mr. Citrus shook the snow and ice off his hair, and face. Azul, forgotten by Henry, threw a snowball from a distance, and managed to have it strike Henry in the small of his back. Henry turned, and with a dangerous smile, rushed the snowball sniper atop his shielded perch. Azul panicked at the sight of the Captain charging towards him, and slipped before falling face first into the snow. Jessica and Goldie began laughing, when a snowball whizzed right in between them. They turned in surprise to see Blackstone lurking in between one of the sparsely parked cars with his skin instinctively trying to match the colors of the cars around him (which didn’t do him much good stealth wise since he was wearing a fluffy Black vest, and warm dark blue thermal pants)

Jessica scoffed at the snickering imposter. “Blackstone! No fair!” She and Goldie began scooping up snowballs as well, and when they charged at Blackstone, ammo in hand, Blackstone slipped and fell in the process of scrambling away to safety. The air about the crewmates was electric now, fully charged with the giddy childlike excitement that could only be found in one thing. A snowball fight. It was every man for themselves, with Henry getting chased the most, Mr. Citrus getting hit the most, and Azul slipping on ice the most. Blackstone was untouchable as he vaulted, ducked, and dodged over and under various projectiles and attacks. He had changed his throwing technique, and now would fully wrap his tendrils around a snowball so that when he lashed it out, the snowball would be launched forward with alarming speed.

Amidst the chaotic fun, Blackstone felt as if a heavy weight was pressing on his chest. It was difficult to breathe, but in all honesty, he couldn’t have cared less. This was the most fun he’d had in ages. Quite possibly the most fun he’d had in his entire life! Laughter and squeals of excitement filled the snow-covered parking lot as the crew held back no remorse and absolutely decimated one another. Glasses were fogged, faces smacked with snowballs, backs were soaked with pesky pieces of ice slipping down one’s neck, and everyone loved it. Mr. Citrus finally got the upper hand on Azul when he dumped a snow chunk the size of a textbook on top of the weapon’s specialist’s head. He went cackling away like a madman, only to get picked off by a well thrown snowball from the silent, but deadly John Brown. Henry slid across the slick pavement to take shelter behind another car and found Blackstone leaning against the tire, gasping in a desperate attempt to catch his breath. Henry smiled at him. “You having fun, Stone?” Blackstone’s tired yet excited eyes met Henry’s as his frills vibrated with excitement. “Are you kidding me? This is the most fun I’ve had in years!”

The still breathless imposter forced himself back to his feet to attack one of the other crewmates again when another painful throb racked through his head, making him stumble. He tried focusing on his breathing, but the more he tried to, the more out of breath he felt. It hurt to breathe, and a wave of fatigue hit the imposter so violently, his eyes rolled backwards, and he collapsed on the ground. Henry noticed and rushed over instantly. He turned Blackstone over onto his back and could hear Blackstone wheezing rapidly, his tendrils weakly clawed at his throat as if he couldn’t breathe, and his skin was starting to turn pale rapidly. This wasn’t good. Henry called for Mr. Citrus, who ran over and slid to a halt on his knees next to the fallen imposter. Blackstone’s eyes fluttered as they struggled to stay open. His wheezing was growing worse, and Henry was nauseous with worry.

“What happened?” Mr. Citrus asked. Henry shrugged out of breath. “I don’t know! I asked him if he was having fun, and then he stood up to go run again and collapsed!” Mr. Citrus pressed his ear to Blackstone’s chest for a moment. He pulled out his phone and shined the light into Blackstone’s eyes for a moment. The wheezing imposter made no change in his condition, and the ragged gasping wheezes were growing shallower by the minute. Mr. Citrus shook his head. “Shit… He’s got hypoxia. If we don’t get him closer to sea level soon, he’s gonna die.” Henry acted instantly, forcing his weak with worry body to stand, and scooped up the limp imposter bridal style. He carried Blackstone towards the van while Mr. Citrus yelled at the crew to hurry up and get in. The crew all piled into the van at record speed, and within minutes the crew filled van was making it’s way down the mountain. Mr. Citrus opened the windows despite the frigid air outside, and Henry supported Blackstone’s limp form as they drove hastily, but not dangerously, down the mountainside.

“I don’t understand!” Henry exclaimed over the rushing of wind past the windows. “Blackstone’s stronger than half of us combined! Why would he collapse?” Mr. Citrus, who was busy checking Blackstone’s pulse didn’t look away from what he was doing as he spoke. “Imposters have bigger lungs than we do! They need more oxygen to breathe properly than us humans which means they’re more susceptible to altitude sickness than we are. I can’t believe I didn’t think about that before deciding to come here… He nearly died…” Henry held his tongue, and gulped down the worry that was coursing through his veins. Blackstone’s eyes were going in and out of focus, and his wheezing began to slow down. His skin was so pale Henry could see his inky black veins and how they webbed across his face. Henry forced himself to look away, and clasped a hand around one of Blackstone’s icy cold tendrils. They were almost off the mountain…

Blackstone awoke on the couch of the vacation house. He sat up gingerly, and immediately was met with a pounding migraine. Mr. Citrus rushed over, and pushed Blackstone gently back onto the makeshift bed before holding up a large cup of water. “Open up.” The doctor commanded. Blackstone opened the large mouth on his stomach and Mr. Citrus gradually poured the contents of the large cup into Blackstone’s mouth. Blackstone’s spiked tongue licked the water that clung to the edges of his mouth before disappearing back into his stomach. Blackstone sighed at the refreshingly cool liquid and remained where he was. His red eyes met Mr. Citrus’s brown ones as he asked weakly. “Why did I collapse?” Mr. Citrus gave him a warm comforting look before he explained. “You didn’t have enough oxygen in your system. I’m gonna keep you home tomorrow so you can fully recover. Hopefully that’ll give you time to acclimatize as well. Now, sleep. You’ll feel better once you wake up.”

Blackstone didn’t need to be told twice. His eyelids were shut mere seconds later and not even his overprotective instincts could keep him awake as he drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I find it rather amusing that my version of imposters are so violent, brutal, and deadly, yet can be so vulnerable to things like foreign foods, simple bacteria, and altitude. It makes sense from a scientific point of view, especially when comparing two different species together, but the overall contrast between Blackstone's badassery and his "Whoops I did a thing so imma die now" just seems so ironically funny to me.

**Author's Note:**

> As always, feel free to mention in the comments what scenarios you'd want to see with these crewmates. There will be a bonus chapter for every 10 chapters posted, and I will add whatever fanart you send me into those bonus chapters. 
> 
> Enjoy reading story number 4!!
> 
> (Quick question... how do I tell if I've grown too invested in a fanfiction?... Have I surpassed that point yet?)


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